


rebel

by Noa



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Blood, F/M, Gen, Minor Violence, No Manga Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-27
Updated: 2013-09-27
Packaged: 2017-12-27 18:58:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/982445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noa/pseuds/Noa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They had unfinished business (or rather, she did).</p>
            </blockquote>





	rebel

There were many things Levi didn’t enjoy, but being injured was amongst his personal top five. Not only did it hurt like a bitch (why was everyone so surprised to hear him complain about the pain?), but it forced him to stay on the sidelines- a safe distance away from the heat of combat.

He felt cold, now. Levi was leisurely strolling across the training grounds, to make sure no soldiers-in-training were slacking off. Not that _he_ cared whether or not those noisy kids worked to become anything useful; most of them wouldn’t want to join the scouting legion anyway. They gave him frightened looks as Levi passed, quickly straightening their shoulders, or changing the topic of their conversation. Levi just rolled his eyes, and walked on. Thankfully, none of the brats seemed to be causing any trouble today. Not that he couldn’t deal with it if they were (the coach was of opinion that Levi may have dealt with it a bit too well in the past), but it was hella bothersome.

Done with his rounds, Levi sat down by the barracks, and leant back against the building. He gave his knee a few prods, and scowled when the pressure caused a dull pain to spread through his joint. Guess he’d be out of the running for a while to come, still. He stretched his legs out in front of him, and rested his head back against the wooden wall. Staring at the sky, a yawn bubbled up- Levi closed his eyes for a moment.

“Hey you. Shorty.”

Levi cracked his eyes open- the voice sounded vaguely familiar. He looked up to find a young woman glaring down at him, blocking the sun from his face. The red scarf snugly wrapped around her neck, confirmed her identity.

“Ackerman.” Levi said mid-yawn. He gave her a bored glance. “What do you want.” She narrowed her eyes at him, and he raised an eyebrow.

Levi barely managed to duck in time to avoid her kick. Driven by instinct, he quickly sprung to his feet. He winced as his knee protested against the sudden movement. As soon as he’d gotten up, Mikasa’s fist was already closing in on his face, and once again Levi dodged by a small margin.

“What the fuck is wrong with you-” He’d barely gotten the words out or she was throwing another punch at him, and with no direct space to avoid it, Levi was forced to intercept. He blocked her attack with his arm, and reached to grab her wrist. When he caught her, she all but _growled_ , and pulled free with a force he should’ve expected from a soldier as proficient as Mikasa Ackerman (but he hadn’t). “Calm down, woman.” Levi said, irritated, and he stopped another incoming fist with his palm. He quickly looked around to see if anyone was nearby enough to spot them, but all the trainees were on the other side of the building, and anyone else was either inside, or not in the area at all. Good. He didn’t want to be seen doing what he was about to do.

Bracing himself on his good leg, Levi kicked hard, aiming for her solar plexus. Mikasa gasped at the impact, and doubled over, but she managed to keep standing (something else he should have expected, but hadn’t). She glared up at him with burning eyes, and he met her gaze with a cool expression, though he could not deny her outburst had left him slightly confused.

“I said calm down.” Levi repeated, while Mikasa was clutching her body where she was struck. He felt a bit bad about hurting her, but really, she was the one who attacked him first. In the back of his mind, he hoped Erwin wouldn’t find out he’d gotten violent with a rookie. “Who the hell gave you the OK to go around harassing your superiors?”

Levi wasn’t actually expecting her to reply. He’d aimed to hit her in such a way that it’d knock the breath out of her for a good while- However, when she opened her mouth to speak, Mikasa’s voice came out clear enough to make Levi doubt he’d even gotten the kick in right.

“If you think your rank intimidates me, you’re wrong.” She said, voice soft. Levi frowned at her, trying to figure out what the hell she wanted from him. When she slowly straightened herself, and reached to adjust the scarf she wore, something clicked in Levi’s mind.

“Is this about Jaeger? I already told you I did what I had to do. Now get lost, I don’t have time to entertain whatever weirdass vendetta you think you have with me.”

He studied her for a bit longer, but she didn’t move, so he turned to leave from behind the barracks. She’d recover in twenty minutes or so. And here he’d been thinking today might not turn out to be _that_ troublesome. He saw something move in his peripheral vision, and the next thing he felt was his face hitting the wall so hard his teeth dug into his bottom lip.

“I’m not going anywhere,” She said lowly.

Levi blinked, and identified the copper taste on his tongue as blood. He spat the blood from his mouth, severely grossed out, and he looked at Mikasa to find her standing up as if she’d fully regained her bearings. His surprise bordered on fascination- it was an incredibly fast recovery, even for a soldier as talented as her. Maybe he _had_ messed up his kick.

“And neither are you.” She finished, and if looks could kill, Levi would have been dead by now (then again, if looks could kill, Levi would have died a long, long time ago).

She was pretty much vibrating with anger, and with a touch of amusement, Levi recognized some of himself in her image. Likeness aside, fighting each other wouldn’t help anyone. The recon corps needed Mikasa, especially now that Levi was compromised. If she got serious with her attacks against him, he would have to get serious as well, and they’d be stuck with two injured soldiers instead of one. One was one too many, already.

“How is beating me up going to help Jaeger.” Levi asked, wiping the blood off his mouth with the back of his hand. He grimaced at the sight of red, and hoped none of it got on his clothes. Titan blood evaporated within seconds, but human blood left stains that made regular appearances in Levi’s nightmares. He brushed his tongue past his teeth to check if they were all still in place; Mikasa packed one hell of a punch. A split lip seems to be all the damage she’s done so far, and if Levi could help it, he’d prefer to keep it that way.

“I have to protect him.” She said. “He’s my family. Someone like you wouldn’t understand.”  
Levi rolled his eyes. This again. “It was your own damn arrogance that nearly got him killed. Is that how you treat your family?”

Mikasa replied without delay.

“If you’d have done your job from the start, none of that would’ve happened. Don’t tell me humanity’s greatest soldier is blaming a rookie for his mistakes?”  
Levi stared at her, unimpressed, and shrugged. “Oh? And why do you think Jaeger's care was entrusted to me? Wasn’t it because you failed to keep him safe, yourself?” She fell silent, and Levi saw his chance to end this conversation. “Don’t get pissed at me for your incompetence, Ackerman. I’m starting to understand why Jaeger's such a brat, having to deal with a sister like you.” He waved his hand dismissively. “Now do us both a favor and take your brother complex somewhere else.”

“Shut up!”

Levi’s eyes widened slightly when she all but threw herself at him, digging her shoulder into his throat as she aimed a punch at his liver. The punch didn’t connect right, but the blow to his throat had caught Levi off-guard, and as he gasped for air, Mikasa used the opportunity to grab a fistful of his hair. Her fiery glare blurred in his vision when she knocked his head back against the wall.

“Shut. up.” She repeated, slamming Levi’s head against the wood with each word. He kept his eyes shut to keep the world from spinning, and tried to put enough weight on his uninjured leg to kick her away from him. It didn’t work.  
“You don’t know anything.” Mikasa continued. She pulled on his hair to force his head back, and punched him cleanly across the jaw. Levi scowled as he felt blood dribble down his chin (there’s no way his clothes would have been left unsoiled, now).

When she withdrew her hand, Levi carefully opened his eyes and looked at her. She was panting, her eyes angry as ever, and he could almost feel her hatred burn on his skin. She tried to kick him again, but Levi managed to grab onto her foot, and with a burst of strength that earned him his place in the scouting legion, he flipped her over. She hit the dusty ground with a thud, and as she scrambled to get back up, Levi stepped towards her.

“Will you knock it off already.” He said. She coughed, trying to clear the sand from her throat. Levi nudged her face with the toe of his boot. “Hey, Ackerman, look at me.”

Mikasa pushed herself up just enough to do so, and spat at him. Levi shuddered in disgust, and without thinking, he kicked her hard, digging his foot into her stomach. She curled in on herself with a weak groan of pain, and Levi backed away from her, pulling a face at where her saliva had stained his coat. Suddenly, his own blood didn’t seem that bad anymore.

“What a damn pest.” Levi muttered, and he tried to brush at his coat with his sleeve (this only seemed to make things worse, so he stopped). His head was throbbing, and he felt a faint nausea. Great. She’d probably given him a concussion, too.

When he heard the soft sound of her voice, Levi looked at her. She’d gotten herself up on hands and knees, and was now staring at the ground below her as if she was trying to find something she’d lost.

“Are you done now?” Levi asked. Despite still sounding calm, he kept his distance, refusing to get taken by surprise again.

“I’ll kill you.” She breathed, and Levi noticed she was trembling. There was nothing but contempt in her words. “I’ll kill you, I’ll cut you into little pieces, I’ll, I-”

Levi sighed. He really didn’t want to do this, but she left him no choice. Reluctantly, he pulled a flintlock pistol from the inside of his overcoat. He crouched down beside Mikasa, and lazily aimed the gun at her. There was about an arm length’s space between them, and Levi had left the safety on (he hoped Mikasa didn’t have enough knowledge about firearms to see the difference). When she saw the weapon in Levi’s hand, Mikasa slowly pushed herself upright until she was sitting up straight. She hung her head, and pulled her scarf up to cover more of her face.

“You get it now, right.” Levi said, and he cocked the barrel of the gun. “You’re not killing anyone. Give up.”

Mikasa averted her eyes, and kept quiet. Levi wiped at his lips again- he was still bleeding. He groaned in frustration, and held up his hand to show Mikasa. “Look what a damn mess you made. And for what?”

Still no answer. Levi tried to see her eyes, but she was facing away from him.

“What do you want from me Ackerman.” He asked. “Let’s imagine the impossible happened, and you actually managed to subdue me here. What would you have done.”

It stayed silent between them, and just as Levi figured she wasn't going to talk to him, Mikasa replied.

“Apologize.” She said. She sounded surprisingly strong considering the fight they’d just been through. Levi raised an eyebrow at her, and she finally met his eyes. “Apologize to Eren. To me.”

“I won’t.” Levi replied. “Jaeger knows why I acted the way I did. It was necessary. Everyone understood that.” Mikasa glared at him, and Levi rolled his eyes. “Well, everyone who’s not a moron.” He added. “And why would I have to apologize to _you_? What I did during the hearing saved his life. You saw the faces of that Military Police trash, they were half-ready to dissect him right there. If you really cared for him, you’d be thanking me.”

Mikasa tensed up, gritting her teeth, to which Levi firmed the grip on his gun. She eyed him for a moment, and then her shoulders sagged.

“Just stay away from Eren.” She said, and Levi snorted.  
“How long do you think he’ll live, if I actually do that?”

No answer.

“That’s what I thought.” Levi commented, and he grunted as he got himself back up. His head still ached, and his lip was still bleeding. He looked from his pistol, to Mikasa, and gave her a questioning look. “Are you done being stupid? I really don’t like having to wave this thing around.”

Mikasa met his gaze sourly. “I’m done.”  
Levi masked his relief, and tucked the weapon away. He reached for her, and though she looked at his fingers like they were tiny little titans, she took his hand, and allowed him to pull her back to her feet.

It was quiet between them as they left the training grounds, heading back towards the old stronghold (and Eren). When Mikasa asked Levi what they’d say if anyone asked after the cause of their injuries, Levi told her that they weren’t going to say anything.

“It’s none of their business.” Levi said pointedly. Mikasa nodded, feeling oddly grateful for Levi’s decision. She shot occasional glances in his direction as they walked- sometimes Levi would catch her looking, and they’d have a few seconds of awkward eye contact before both of them returned their attention to the road.

“I really don’t like you.” She told him, as they approached the large stone building.  
“Good.” He answered, and he pulled the heavy door open to let her in. “You shouldn’t.”

_-fin_

 

 


End file.
